Dear March--Come in--
How glad I am--
I hoped for you before--
Put down your Hat--
You must have walked--
How out of Breath you are--
Dear March, how are you, and the Rest--
Did you leave Nature well--
Oh March, Come right up stairs with me--
I have so much to tell--
How glad I am--
I hoped for you before--
Put down your Hat--
You must have walked--
How out of Breath you are--
Dear March, how are you, and the Rest--
Did you leave Nature well--
Oh March, Come right up stairs with me--
I have so much to tell--
Emily Dickinson
Yes, March is here at last, and in twenty days it will be Spring! As glad as I am to tear the page of February off the calendar, I know that the month of March can be a tease. Although the calendar may say that March 20 is the Spring Equinox, we all know that Mother Nature doesn't always pay attention. We may have some warm sunny days perfect for getting a head start on the garden, or we could easily have the worst snowstorm of the winter. I have seen both extremes in weather in recent years. March likes to tease us with the promise of spring then quickly remind us here in the Midwest that winter can last until April. I do hope this year March decides to be nice . . . it's already been a long winter.
Garden Muse Day is brought to you the first of every month by Carolyn Gail at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago, and I've enjoyed participating in this meme since I first found it last June. The poem I chose for this month is by one of my favorite poets, but it's one I had never read before, and I'd like to give you a little background to explain how I chose it.
Many times in the last year, I've seen the name Tasha Tudor mentioned on different blogs, especially at the time of her passing last June. Some of you may have even invited her to your special dinner sponsored by VP. I'm not afraid to admit when I am ignorant on a subject, so I will confess that I had no idea who she was, though the name sounded vaguely familiar. At first I thought she was some trendy designer--ha! was I wrong there! Eventually, I gathered she had illustrated Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden, but I thought there must be more to this woman's career than that to make her so famous.
This winter I finally had some time to investigate her more thoroughly and ordered several books by and about Tasha Tudor from the library. One of the books was The Private World of Tasha Tudor, which gave me a good overview of her life and philosophy about nature and gardening as well as beautiful photos of her home and gardens. What a fascinating woman! Meeting her must have been like stepping back in time. As much as I admire her approach to gardening, her talent, and her tireless work ethic, I don't think I would like to garden in a long dress and apron, though:)
Two of the other books I received turned out to be books of poetry--one a book of poems written and illustrated by her, and the other a book of Emily Dickinson poems which she illustrated. This poem about March included the illustration above--perhaps if you click on it to enlarge it you can see her painting in more detail.
And to think I started reading blogs thinking I would just get ideas for planting flowers!
"Life isn't long enough to do all you could accomplish.
And what a privilege even to be alive. "
--Tasha Tudor
